Secrets
by Lilac Moon
Summary: Sequel to Endangered Legacy. 9 months have passed since the battle in Goldar's dark dimension and things are quiet. But when Billy discovers that two missing DEA agents are actually Tori's parents, things spiral out of control as a dangerous cartel seeks to punish the Hanson's through their daughter. Can Billy and Jason warn Hunter and Tori in time or will they be too late?
1. Part 1: Double Lives

Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers. Saban and Nickelodeon do.

AN: Welcome to the sequel to Endangered Legacy. When we left off, the rangers were celebrating Christmas 2005 together and now, nine months have passed and it is now **September 2006**. I recommend first reading Endangered Legacy. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Pairings: Hunter/Tori, Jason/Trini, Billy/Kat, Tommy/Kim, Adam/Tanya, Rocky/Aisha, Shane/Skyla, Dustin/Marah, Cam/Leann, Conner/Kira

Secrets

Sequel to Endangered Legacy

Part 1

"Double Lives"

_**Angel Grove, CA**_

Rocky and Skull, or rather Eugene, as most people now called him, got out of the car and began their approach on the crime scene. They had been called in on another homicide and were sure it was part of the recent string they had been investigating. It saddened them both that Angel Grove wasn't quite the sleepy city it had once been. In fact, crime had increased forty percent since the days when Angel Grove's main problem was monster attacks. And if Rocky was truthful, he preferred Zedd, Mondo, or Divatox's monsters. At least he knew where they came from, why they were attacking, and how they would be defeated, even in the days after he was no longer a ranger. At least with alien monsters attacking, there would always be power rangers there to protect people.

But human evil like this was an entirely different story and when the murders were connected to a possible drug network, it only made things more complicated. They couldn't get people to talk out of fear and ones that would talk were always winding up dead, despite the best police protection. Angel Grove Police Department had already lost three officers in the last year, two on protection details and one undercover vice officer.

"What do you have?" Rocky asked the female beat cop that had called it in.

"Latino female, no ID, probably between the ages of eighteen and twenty-four, her gut sliced clean open," she reported, as Rocky lifted the tarp and examined the gruesome scene. As a ranger, he had seen things that would make anyone turn white as a sheet, but it didn't prepare him for this kind of carnage. The first time he saw something like this as a young beat cop, he had lost everything in his stomach.

"She looks like the others, definitely possible Mexican descent," Skull suggested.

"Yeah, she was cut open just like the other victims, probably for the drugs they smuggled inside her," Rocky replied, as he placed the tarp back over the body.

"This thing is bigger than just Angel Grove…" Skull said. Rocky nodded.

"It's nationwide," the former blue zeo ranger sighed.

"I'm going to call Billy in Quantico and see if can give me any leads…off the record, of course," Rocky decided. His superiors wouldn't take kindly to Federal involvement unless they had no other choice, but Rocky had no patience or time for bureaucrats when young women were being used as drug mules and then murdered.

* * *

"The Angel Grove police still have no suspects in the murders, except that they are drug related. They are asking that the citizens of Angel Grove remain vigilant," the male reporter stated, as the camera panned to Tanya Sloan-Park.

"And to end on a higher note, we have a miraculous story coming out of Hawaii tonight. A badly burned man that was found on the shores of a beach two years ago has in fact survived. You may remember hearing this story back in late 2004 when the male, so badly burned and unrecognizable, was discovered washed up on a beach," Tanya said, pausing for a moment.

"After being discovered by three people, who found the man had a pulse, he was rushed to the nearest hospital. He was not expected to survive and has remained in a deep, medically induced coma since that day. While doctors say he must still remain in his coma, his condition was upgraded to stable this week. Perhaps miracles do happen," Tanya concluded, trying to end the news broadcast on a higher note in what was a gruesome newscast. Today was actually her first day back from maternity leave. Their baby girl, Marisa Ashala Park, was three months old now and even though she had only been back to work a few hours, she couldn't wait to go home to her baby and away from this ugliness.

* * *

_**A compound somewhere near Mexico City**_

The man's head snapped to the side, as he was struck hard with a leather belt. He sat tied to a chair with a woman, who was also tied to a chair at his back. She yelped in pain, as she was struck as well.

"We know that you're undercover agents…now tell us what you know," the man, dressed in a dark suit, demanded.

"You're mistaken. We are just a couple traveling through your beautiful country," Jack Hanson lied, which earned him another blow to the left side of his face.

"Lie if you must, American scum, but we know everything about you," the man said, as he turned to his constituents.

"Your cover has been blown and we know your true identities, Jack and Alana Hanson, DEA vice agents, hailing from Blue Bay Harbor, California. How quaint," the man sneered. His technician at the laptop said something in Spanish very quietly and their captor seemed very intrigued.

"Interesting…you have a daughter," he stated, causing Jack and Alana to freeze in fear. They had been so careful and yet someone had exposed them as not only government agents, but their personal lives as well. The technician turned the laptop screen so his boss could see the photo and the two felt it become very hard for them to breathe.

"What a beautiful girl…I think I must meet her," he sneered.

"No…NO LEAVE HER ALONE!" Jack yelled, as he and Alana struggled with their bonds.

"Keep an eye on them. I'm going to California for a few days," he said with an evil smirk.

* * *

_**Ninja Ops**_

Cam sighed, as he sat back in his chair in Ninja Ops. They didn't have a need for a ranger headquarters anymore, but the room still remained a place where they often gathered when they were together and off limits to students, with the exception of Marah and Kapri since they were family.

"You look exhausted, son," Kanoi mentioned, as he set a cup of tea down for him.

"Thanks dad….and I am. I'm starting to think that Leann and I should have eloped," Cam replied.

"Bringing two academies together that were once rivals will not be an easy transition, but your union will do so," Kanoi stated.

"There are those at both academies that don't like the idea of merging the schools, you know," Cam reminded. Kanoi nodded.

"I know son, but in time, those that choose to stay will learn to accept it. Years ago, I may not have been so open to our once rival academies becoming one and it is likely Omino would have felt the same. But as Lothor so thoroughly taught us, we will fail apart, but prevail together as one," Kanoi said wisely. Cam nodded.

"Would you and Leann not marry if we decided not to merge the academies?" Kanoi asked. Cam looked appalled.

"Of course not, I love her. It wouldn't matter to me," Cam replied. Kanoi smiled.

"Then you shouldn't worry about what others think," Kanoi said. Cam nodded.

"Thanks dad," he replied, as he went back to work.

* * *

_**The Thunder Ninja Academy**_

_**Outside Reefside, CA**_

Several Thunder academy students jogged through the woods that surrounded their Academy, which was located just outside Reefside. Four of them in all, two uniforms stripped in Navy and the other two in Crimson, indicating their fighting classes.

"Did Zara get it?" one of the males, a Caucasian boy with brown hair, asked in a hushed whisper. The red haired girl with green eyes smiled and held up the tattered looking scroll.

"Yes, this is it!" the other boy, an athletically built boy with ash blonde hair and blue eyes.

"What if we get caught?" the last girl, a tall brunette asked.

"Zara is taking care of that right now by making a spectacle. We'll be fine for a few minutes," the blonde, known as Derek, stated.

"This is it…the scroll of devastation," Ashlee, the tall brunette, said as they glanced wearily at each other.

"We're so expelled if Omino or Bradley find out we stole this," the brown haired you man known as Nate said.

"Zara knows what she's doing. Now hide the scroll and let's get back," the red head snapped. She was known as Rachel. They hid it in the hollow of the tree and covered it with leaves, before heading back to the academy grounds.

* * *

Tori shut the door on her van and slung her blue bag over her shoulder. A few of the students still gave her odd looks, but most were used to her presence at the Thunder Academy now, as she had been a frequent visitor in the last ten months.

"Hey Tor," Leann greeted, as she walked into the main operations building.

"Hi Leann," Tori greeted in return.

"You're just in time. I think Hunter's ready to escape again," Leann said.

"Uh oh...is it problems with the same student again?" Tori asked. She nodded.

"Most nuts can be cracked, but this girl is having none of it. She deliberately goes out of her way to break the rules. I think she's doing it just to get personally reprimanded to Hunter's office," Leann divulged. Tori sighed.

"Sometimes his standoffish attitude has that effect on the wrong kind of girls," she replied, only half joking.

"Maybe, but the Master brooder only has eyes for you," Leann assured. Tori smiled and then remembered one other reason she had come today. She quickly fished out a stack of envelopes from her bag.

"Oh here, Cam finished his half of the invitations," Tori said, as she handed them to her.

"Thanks, I've got to get these out being that our wedding is only a few months away now," Leann said, looking at the penmanship on the envelopes and then suspiciously at her fellow female ninja.

"Did you do these for Cam?" she asked. Tori laughed.

"Not all of them, but I did help. I took pity on him," Tori replied. Leann rolled her eyes.

"He just wanted to get out of helping with planning the wedding so he could bury himself in his tech world," Leann said knowingly. Tori smiled.

"I know, I got duped, but I didn't mind," the blonde replied, as Leann hugged her.

"Go rescue your beau. I'm going to go kidnap mine and make him take me somewhere nice," she said, as he headed off. Tori waved and continued down the hall toward Hunter's office where she could hear the conversation from the open door. She guessed what they were discussing was no secret so he hadn't bothered to close the door.

* * *

The dark haired, half Asian girl smirked seductively, as Hunter tried to control his temper.

"We have to stop meeting like this…Sensei Bradley," she purred.

"You're right, we do. I'm tired of seeing you in my office every day. I should expel you for violence against another student," Hunter said sternly. She suppressed an eye roll.

"It wasn't violence, we were sparring and I'm just that much better than Daniel. It's not my fault he lacks skill," she argued. Hunter sighed.

"Zara, there is a difference between sparring and attacking, you know that," he tried to stress to her. She shrugged.

"I got carried away I guess. Perhaps some one on one sessions with a real Thunder ninja would be a better use of my obvious above average skills," Zara suggested.

"The only thing you're going to be doing is running laps and polishing thunder staffs," Hunter replied. Zara smirked.

"You're such a slave driver, Sensei," she pouted. Hunter was really trying not to lose it now.

"Zara…" he said sternly.

"Relax, I'm going. Has anyone ever told you that you're really sexy when you're angry?" she hissed, before walking out, nearly running right into Tori, who had caught part of the conversation. She glared at the water sensei, a look that Tori wasn't a stranger to at the Thunder Academy. Hunter sometimes was on the receiving end at the Wind Academy with some of the older sensei's who did not like the new post Lothor closeness of the two schools either.

"Wow…she's a student?" Tori asked, as she entered her boyfriend's office.

"My most difficult…every class has one I guess," he replied, as he stood up to greet her.

"She was hitting on you," she teased. He smirked and pulled her close, before planting a passionate kiss on her lips.

"You know where my heart is though," he whispered passionately, as their lips parted. Tori smiled up at him, her sapphire eyes sparkling with love, before she kissed him again.

"Come on, let's grab some takeout and go home," he suggested. She nodded, as they joined hands and left his office. Unfortunately, as they left absorbed by each other, they failed to notice the dark eyes glaring into their backs.

* * *

_**FBI Headquarters**_

_**Quantico, VA**_

"Why haven't you gone home yet?" Jason asked, as he poked his head inside Billy's office.

"I'm working on something. Rocky called me earlier and asked for a favor and it happened to uncover a whole lot more than I anticipated," Billy replied.

"Okay, but we just closed a case. You should be home with Kat and the girls," Jason said.

"Normally I would be…but I think we may have a problem. Shut the door," Billy replied. Jason groaned.

"Is this ranger related?" Jason whispered.

"Possibly. Rocky says there has been a string of homicides recently in Angel Grove that he believes are drug related," Billy said, tossing the file to him.

"Drug mules?" Jason asked, as he looked over the information. All the women were of Latino descent and had been killed in the same manner. It was well known that many cartels smuggled drugs into the country my making young women swallow small plastic wrapped packages of various illegal drugs.

"Okay…but I still don't get why you're looking into this. It's not FBI territory," Jason responded.

I know, but Rocky asked me to look into it since I have that acquaintance that works for DEA, off the record, of course," Billy said. Jason nodded.

"Okay…so did you find any leads?" he asked.

"Well, it seems that two of their undercover vice agents have gone missing recently. Normally I wouldn't think much about it, but he let the names slip and I looked them up," Billy said, as he turned the screen so his longtime friend could see.

"Jack and Alana Hanson?" Jason asked, not making the connection.

"They're a married team and they've been undercover running drugs for one of Mexico's most notorious drug cartels for years. We're talking the kind of creep that makes mules out of young women and then has them cut open for the drugs when they get here, just like the dead girls that are popping up all over southern California," Billy replied.

"As much as I would like to go after a scumbag like that, our asses would be in a sling if we went anywhere near DEA territory," Jason warned.

"Normally I wouldn't even be considering it, but these are Tori's parents," Billy told him. Jason sighed and put his head down for a moment.

"Tori's parents are DEA?" Jason asked. Billy nodded.

"And she has no idea. I'm pretty sure now that they've blown their cover. The ring leader, Palo Vasquez, might send his goons after Tori to get them to talk," Billy stated.

"You're sure? Cause you have to be positive if we're going to even think about going off the radar here," Jason questioned. Billy typed something up on his system and showed Jason frozen surveillance footage on one of his screens.

"These four arrived an hour ago in LAX airport from Mexico City. L.A. is only a four hour drive to Blue Bay Harbor," Billy said. Jason sighed.

"Dammit," Jason cursed. Billy nodded.

"Tori is plenty capable and so is Hunter, but you know what these kind of men are like, Jase. They have an entire network of thugs here in the states and access to a plethora of semi-automatic weaponry. I don't know about you, but I'm not going to let them kidnap Tori if we can do something about it. You know what they'll do to her and Hunter will be killed because he'll be right in the middle trying to protect her," Billy said. He sighed.

"They're rangers, Jase…that makes them family," Billy added.

"All right…but this has to be completely off the record. We have to go in civilian clothes and unmarked hand guns. And even then, there's a really good chance we'll be found out," Jason mentioned.

"I've already put in for my time off and then logged in as you, putting yours in as well. Since we just closed a case, it doesn't look suspicious," Billy said.

"Wait…you logged in as me?" Jason asked. Billy shrugged.

"Just trying to save time," Billy replied nonchalantly.

"Okay…but say we do capture those goons and free Tori's parents. Then they start flapping their gums and we're found out? Our careers would be over," Jason warned.

"I've actually taken care of that, since we're officially turning this into a ranger mission. After we apprehend our perpetrators, they won't remember a thing about us," Billy said slyly.

"Do I want to know what you mean by that? Or how many rules it breaks?" Jason asked. Billy smirked.

"It's a good story. You see, back in the day, Adam did this school project in Ms. Appleby's class where he brought in a kaleidoscope. And Zedd being Zedd decided to turn it into a monster that could scramble our brains. Tommy, Kim, and I lost our memories," Billy rambled. Jason shook his head, as Billy continued.

"So after we got them back and it was all over, I started playing around with the same concept; how light can scramble our molecules in the right circumstances and I sort of came up with a little device that can erase as much memory as I want it to," Billy explained.

"Hold on…are you saying you have one of those little flashy light memory things like in Men in Black?" Jason asked, referring to the movie.

"Um…huh, well I actually hadn't thought of that comparison, but yeah, it's a lot like that," Billy replied. Jason shook his head and chuckled a little.

"You know, we would be so screwed if you went evil on us," Jason joked. Billy scoffed.

"Like I would do that. Kat would kill me," Billy joked back.

"So I suppose you already booked our plane tickets?" Jason asked.

"No time, the goons have several hours on us. We're using the ranger express from my basement lab," Billy replied.

"Of course we are," Jason drawled.

"I need to call Trini or did you already do that for me too?" Jason asked.

"No, but Kat might have already. We're dropping her and the girls off in Angel Grove and picking up Rocky and Adam," Billy replied.

"Oh this just gets better and better. Next you'll tell me that we're swinging into Reefside for Tommy too," Jason quipped.

"He's meeting us in Blue Bay Harbor," Billy answered. Jason threw his hands up.

"Am I the last to know about all of this?" Jason asked.

"Yes, but not intentionally. It's not my fault you're getting your boxers in a twist, because I'm not letting you play fearless leader," Billy joked back, making Jason laugh again, as they headed for the elevator.

* * *

_**The Thunder Ninja Academy**_

_**Student Dorms**_

"You better have it," Zara snapped at her friends, as she returned to the dorms later.

"Relax Zara, while you were busy throwing yourself at Sensei Bradley, we got the scroll," Nate jabbed. Zara smirked.

"Jealous?" she hissed. He glared at her.

"Of Hunter Bradley? Not a chance," Nate lied.

"Yes you are. You're a crimson thunder ninja and he got the crimson thunder morpher. Every crimson thunder ninja is jealous of that. As for me, you know I'm drawn to power. And he's gorgeous to boot," Zara replied, as she took the scroll.

"Yeah and he's in bed with a water ninja," Ashlee reminded.

"Don't remind me, she has a lot of nerve showing up here all the time. But luckily with this, we won't have to stomach that much longer," Zara replied.

"What exactly is this scroll supposed to tell us?" Derek asked.

"How to regain control, of course. Those who control the elements will control everything and right now, those who were privileged enough to be rangers are in control," Zara snapped.

"And they're destroying centuries of tradition by merging the Academies," Ashlee agreed.

"Can you translate the scroll?" Nate asked.

"Of course I can, you fool," Zara spat, as she began to read the scroll of destruction.

* * *

_**The Apartment of Hunter Bradley and Tori Hanson**_

The lights were low and the television played a movie in the background. But neither of the room's occupants noticed, for they were far too absorbed by each other. Their limbs were tangled and their lips dueled in a passionate rhythm. Tori rested comfortably atop his tall frame, her hands combing through his shaggy, dirty blonde hair. Hunter's strong hands sensually moved up and down her back, while his lips alternated between kissing her sweet lips and nipping his way down her slender neck. They had only officially been together a few months, but after their harrowing experience in Goldar's dark dimension and their feelings had come to the surface, they decided they would waste no more time. Since then, they had become nearly inseparable and the others sometimes joked how they were the most unlikely pair. She was so light and he could be so dark. She was social and he was the epitome of antisocial when he wanted to be. She didn't bottle her emotions and wasn't afraid to talk about how she felt. And he was the master brooder. But as they were so good at reminding their friends, opposites attract, after all. After their near death situation had resolved without tragedy, they had talked for hours that night and the love that had been so swiftly declared had cemented a bond between them that would never fizzle.

That's why when Tori was tired of rattling around in her parent's big house alone and Hunter's lease was up, they moved into an apartment together. Their teaching salaries were nothing to write home about, but those combined with Tori's side work designing surfboards and his as a mechanic at Storm Chargers allowed them to live comfortably. They were enjoying everything about being together, especially the physical side, which they were both taking great pleasure in exploring.

As Hunter kissed her neck intently, sucking on a tender spot just below her ear, Tori busied her hands by sliding them under his shirt, letting her hands explore his muscled torso. She was lost in a haze of pleasure and felt a spike of excitement, as he stood up and swept her into his arms. She wrapped her legs around his waist, as he stumbled into their bedroom, shutting the door behind him. Neither of them noticed Hunter's phone buzzing on vibrate with a call…

* * *

"Come on Hunter…pick up…" Jason pleaded, as Billy drove. They had arrived in Angel Grove via teleportation that evening and picked up the crew for this mission. Kat and Tanya opted to stay behind with their children, as well as Rocky and Aisha's son, since Aisha insisted on coming, as did Trini, stating that they needed her since she was a doctor and could handle a gun. Kim was leaving their daughter with Hayley and she, Tommy, Conner, and Kira were meeting them in Blue Bay Harbor. In addition to Rocky and Adam, Skull was also coming and Jason couldn't turn down help from yet another experienced gun handler.

"Tori isn't answering either," Trini reported, as she hung up her cell phone.

"It is getting late…maybe they're asleep," Aisha suggested.

"Or otherwise engaged," Rocky mentioned, receiving an elbow in the gut from his wife.

"Ah, young ranger induced raging hormones," Billy joked fondly, making the others chuckle, except Skull.

"All right, I get it, ranger joke, right?" Skull asked.

"Sort of…see the power super charged pretty much everything, our reflexes, our speed, and our agility in battle," Adam explained.

"It also super charged everything else too, like our hormones," Rocky chuckled. Skull shook his head.

"And here I thought in high school, you guys were just a bunch of goody-two shoes," Skull joked.

"We were, we didn't really act on those hormones, you know beyond making out and cuddling maybe, but I remember there being a lot of cold showers," Jason recalled, making Trini giggle.

"But…none of you are rangers anymore," Skull said.

"But the morphing grid left its mark on anyone it touched. Residual power is bonded to any power holder's DNA and let's just say, certain things and experiences for us are still…enhanced," Billy said.

"Who knew you had such a gutter mind," Aisha teased the genius, as they all laughed.

"It's good that we can laugh now…because from these files we've been looking at, these guys are hard core," Skull said, as he closed one of the case files.

"Yeah, but he picked the wrong girl to mess with. They're about to get a bunch of former rangers up in their business," Aisha replied sassily.

"I just wonder how she's going to take it when she finds out her parents have been keeping a lot of secrets from her all these years," Billy said.

"I'm sure their hearts are in the right place. They only wanted to protect her and I'm sure they never thought their cover would be blown," Trini reasoned.

"Not to mention the fact that I doubt they know about the Academy or at least everything it entails," Jason added.

"Let's just hope we get there before those goons find her," Rocky said.

* * *

_**The Hanson Beach House**_

_**Blue Bay Harbor, CA**_

"Well?" Palo demanded impatiently, as his men searched the empty beach house.

"She's not here," one spoke in a heavy accent.

"We searched her room and many of her things are gone," another reported. Palo drummed his fingers on the table and then walked over to the mantel in the living room, searching the pictures for clues. There were a few family portraits from various years, a graduation picture, and then another that looked very recent compared with the photo he had of this girl. He picked it up and smashed the frame on the floor, before picking the photo up. It was of her and group of young people, her friends he assumed, though he noticed that the tall, blonde man in the photo had his arms around her waist.

"Perhaps she lives with him now. Memorize this face too," he said, as he passed the picture of the young people around.

"What now?" another man asked, waiting for direction.

"We spread out. This piss ant town isn't that big. When you spot one of them, you call the rest. No one double crosses me and the ones that did must pay. This little girl will pay the price of her parent's arrogance," Palo spat.


	2. Part 2: Abduction

Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers. Saban and Nickelodeon do.

AN: Welcome to the sequel to Endangered Legacy. When we left off, the rangers were celebrating Christmas 2005 together and now, nine months have passed and it is now September 2006. Enjoy and let me know what you think! Thanks for all the great reviews. Here are responses to those who did:

Alex B. Goode: Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Harry2: Yep, time for former rangers to rally. Glad you're enjoying the story.

lizziestrong7135: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it.

Boris Yeltsin: Yes, I recommend reading Endangered Legacy. Everything will make more sense. Glad you're enjoying it. :)

TommyOliverMMPRFan: Yes, this one will escalate fast. This is the 2nd story of what will be a series. This one is kind of setting up future events while at the same time having its own plot. Hope you continue to enjoy. :)

Pinkrangerfan: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it. :)

brankel1: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it. As for Zara, she's up to no good and more about her will be revealed later.

Lmv16: Yeah, Hunter and Tori are in quite a pickle again. Hope you continue to enjoy. :)

MF 22: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it. Sometimes, the ideas just come. This story is actually the 2nd in the series that will set up a few more stories in this series after this one. As for Crimson Rising, I update as often as possible and try to more than once a month, but sometimes things don't always go my way. I'm so glad you enjoy my writing though. What a great compliment. :)

CM6NCIS6PLL6: Thanks, glad you like it. :)

garnetred: Thanks, glad you like it. I always liked Skull and so I thought it would be fun to involve him in this series.

MMPRFansince93: Thanks, glad you like it. :)

Secrets

Sequel to Endangered Legacy

Part 2

"Abduction"

Zara angrily tossed the scroll away and swept her hair up into a ponytail. She had been up all night translating the scroll and studying every passage. Now she knew what had to be done and it would not be so simple.

"What the hell?" Derek asked. She was known for having a short temper, but her tirades would get them nowhere.

"What did it say?" Ashlee pressed. Zara sighed, thinking about exactly how to put the translation into words.

"The Abyss of Evil it seems was only the precursor to what would have been so much more. The section that my…Lothor opened was only a small portion of what he could have realized," Zara explained.

"Um…I don't get it," Ashlee replied.

"That's because you're an idiot," Rachel sneered, as the two girls glared at each other.

"Stop it," Zara snapped.

"Think of the Abyss of evil like being one room in a network of other "rooms" or levels rather in the underworld as a whole. Lothor, if he hadn't been defeated when he had, would have unleashed the entire depths of the underworld upon the earth and commanded them all if he had executed the scroll's instructions properly," Zara explained.

"Does this scroll contain those instructions?" Nate asked. Zara nodded.

"Yes…but it's not that simple. In order for the underworld to be unleashed in its entirety, the ceremony must be performed during a lunar eclipse," Zara explained.

"Those aren't frequent, but they do happen more often than some astrological events," Derek stated.

"That's not it. In addition to a lunar eclipse, the planet Mars, appropriately named after the Roman God of War, must be in a rare close proximately to the Earth. Fortunately, thanks to the Internet, I found out that these conditions will happen in September 2007," Zara informed them.

"Okay…so that's still a year from now so that gives us plenty of time to prepare. It's perfect, in fact. What had you so worked up?" Nate asked.

"Because the scroll revealed something else that could ruin everything," Zara spat.

"What is it?" Ashlee asked.

"If the underworld is unleashed during this time, the scroll says that not even the army of the warriors of light can stop the destruction…unless they are protected by the union of a pair that could unleash an amethyst storm," Zara explained. Rachel sighed.

"Why do scrolls always speak in riddles?" she questioned.

"Amethyst Storm? Our Ninja powers can create storms, especially if the users are powerful enough…like ranger level power over the elements. But there's no Amethyst designation," Nate said.

"You're not getting it!" Zara snapped.

"It's a combined power. If you combine blue with crimson, you get amethyst. There is a deeper reason behind just a simple rivalry between the academies that we have been isolated for centuries," Zara said.

"If a thunder ninja of the crimson designation was to ever have a child with a wind ninja of the water designation, that child could grow to be extremely powerful. The elders who wrote the scrolls decided that if the schools were separated, then the likelihood of such a child ever coming into being would be minimized. They originally thought it would be much too dangerous for such a child to exist, especially if the child were to be corrupted," Zara explained.

"But now that the schools will join, that could change," Derek concluded.

"It already has. Sensei Bradley is already with a water ninja. If the gossip going around the school is right, then they are in a serious relationship and that could be a huge problem," Rachel mentioned.

"But they don't have any idea what their combined powers could do, so that's in our favor…right?" Ashlee asked.

"For now, but I have no doubt that Sensei Watanabe and Sensei Omino know what this scrolls says. They will tell them if it becomes necessary," Zara replied.

"So what do we do?" Nate asked.

"We go on as planned and prepare for the ceremony. Everything has to be absolutely perfect or it won't work. And we're stepping up our training in the dark arts," Zara replied.

"And what if Bradley and his little mermaid get in the way?" Derek questioned.

"Then we'll eliminate them if we have to," Zara responded darkly.

* * *

Hunter's feet pounded the pavement, as he rounded the boardwalk and continued on toward the beach. This was a typical morning, as he and Tori were up at sunrise. While he went for a run, she went to catch the early morning waves. It had become routine for them to meet at the beach and then return to their apartment to clean up, eat breakfast, and then get to the Academies for their classes.

Hunter stopped finally and breathed air into his lungs. He pulled out his phone, as he felt it vibrate and found that he had eight messages. He hadn't bothered to check it this morning and wondered who was so desperate to get ahold of him.

"Hey handsome," Tori greeted, as she was suddenly beside him with her surfboard under her arm.

"Oh, hey babe," he replied, as she pecked him on the lips.

"You're a little preoccupied," she mentioned.

"Sorry, it's just that someone must really want to talk to me. I have eight messages," he said. She smirked.

"Well…we were a little busy last night," she purred. He smiled.

"We were," he agreed, as their lips met again. They joined hands and started back toward the boardwalk. Once they reached it, they found several men blocking their way.

"For this being such a small town, you're not an easy one to find, Ms. Hanson," the man in the center said. He was dressed in an expensive suit and spoke with an accent.

"I'm sorry, but who are you?" she asked defensively, as they slowly noticed the thugs surrounding him. And neither missed how heavily armed they were.

"Friends of your parents," he said, as his men surrounded them.

"You see, they committed a serious grievance against me and now they must pay for it," he continued.

"I don't know who you are, but you need to back off now," Hunter growled.

"Easy there, we're just here to talk to this lovely young woman. I know her parents and now I would just _love_ to get to know her too," he leered in response.

"I don't know what you're talking about. My parents don't know you. They're on a business trip," Tori insisted. The leader and his men laughed.

"Poor thing has no idea, boss," one sneered.

"Yeah, mommy and daddy lied to you, Bonita," another sneered with a heavy accent. He suddenly cried out in pain, as Hunter spun and kicked him in the face when he got too close. They both launched at two others, spin kicking them onto their backs. But the cocking of several handguns made them freeze where they were.

"Unless you'd like to find out if you're bulletproof, then I suggest you don't move again," the leader snapped. One of the thugs lunged and grabbed Tori, putting a gun to her Temple, causing Hunter to stop his advance.

"Don't move pretty boy or poor little Blondie here will be a mess on the boardwalk…and that would be such a waste," he leered, as he sniffed her hair. Hunter gazed into her frightened eyes and slowly put his hands up. Two of the armed thugs advanced and one slammed the butt of his gun into the back of Hunter's neck, causing him to collapse to the ground. Tori screamed, as they started beating him, but the man holding her covered her mouth. She was hit as well and everything went black, as she fell limp in her captor's arms. Once Hunter was unconscious as well, they threw the pair into the back of their van nearby.

"Tie their hands and get us out of here," the leader ordered, as they piled into the van and sped off. Left behind on the boardwalk were Tori's bag with her phone, her surfboard, and Hunter's ringing cellphone.

* * *

"_And neither of them are answering their phones or communicators?"_ Sensei Omino asked over the video phone.

"No…it's not like them to not show up for their classes," Cam replied.

"I fear something is very wrong," Kanoi said gravely.

"Dustin and I are going to check their apartment and then around town. Maybe someone saw something," Shane said.

"Dude…how could they just disappear? They're both wicked fighters," Dustin replied.

"Many things could have occurred. If there was foul play, then it is likely they were taken by surprise," Kanoi reasoned, as Cam's phone rang.

"Hello?" he answered.

"_Cam, it's Billy. Have you heard from Hunter or Tori?" _the genius asked.

"No…we were just discussing that. It appears that they're missing," Cam responded.

"_Damn…I was afraid we might be too late," _Billy said.

"Too late for what? Cam asked.

"_I'll explain in person. Can you and the others meet us somewhere?" _Billy asked.

"You're here in Blue Bay Harbor?" Cam asked, now starting to get very worried.

"_Yeah, what's that sports shop called that some of you worked at?" _Billy asked.

"Storm Chargers. We'll meet you there in ten minutes," Cam replied, as he hung up the phone.

"What's going on?" Dustin asked.

"I'm not sure yet, but we need to go. We'll call you when we know more, dad," Cam called, as he, Shane, Dustin, Marah, and Skyla headed up the stairs to exit through the secret entrance. The aging Sensei sighed, as he sat down at his desk, swirling some tea and trying to use his inner ninja to calm his emotions. Cam was his son biologically, but the others might as well have been his children as well.

Kanoi sipped carefully at his hot tea and sighed, as he labored over his scrolls. For months, he had taken to studying the most prophetic scrolls, because he sensed that something ominous was on the horizon. He and Sensei Omino knew what a union between a crimson thunder ninja and a water ninja could mean. They also knew that if danger were to threaten them again, they would have to tell them of the prophecy. He had been reluctant to burden their young love with duty and responsibility. He had hoped after Lothor's defeat the second time and Goldar's destruction, that his rangers could live peaceful lives. But he knew the power would call them back and for their protection, they would have to know they were destined to stand against evil for many years to come…

* * *

Tori's head was pounding and the light stung her eyes, as she slowly opened them. She found that she couldn't move her hands or feet. There was a warm body next to hers and she was relieved to discover that it was Hunter's. She turned her head and gasped, as she saw the damage they had done to him. Dried blood stained the side of his face from an angry cut on his left eyebrow and there were purpling bruises on his face where he had been violently struck.

"Well, well, awake already, bonita. Thought you'd be out for the count," one of the thugs sneered, as his eyes roamed over her like she was something to eat. Her skin crawled under his gaze and she shrugged away in repulsion, as he touched her face.

"It is a long drive to Mexico. Let's have some fun," he leered, as he pulled her to him and started kissing her neck. Tori screamed and struggled, as he pushed her down and started getting on top of her. She bit him and thrust her knees into his groin. He doubled over in pain, before backhanding her hard across the face. He raised his hand to strike her again, but his boss stopped him.

"Miguel!" Palo screamed. He stopped and got up from the floor of the van.

"I want her untouched for now. I promise there will be plenty of time to play with her when we return to the compound where mommy and daddy can be made to watch," Palo said. Miguel smirked and pushed her away. She scooted her way back toward Hunter and turned away from her captors, burying her face in his shirt and soaking it with her tears.

* * *

"Not that we're not glad to see all of you…but what are you doing in Blue Bay Harbor?" Shane asked, as they met the group outside Storm Chargers.

"Well, it started yesterday when Rocky called me to ask me to probe some information out of an acquaintance I have at the DEA office regarding recent drug related murders in Angel Grove. As it turns out, two DEA agents went missing recently," Billy explained.

"What does that have to do with Tori and Hunter?" Cam asked.

"Those two DEA agents happen to be Tori's parents," Jason replied.

"What?" Shane asked in disbelief.

"Tori's parents are government agents?" Cam questioned. Billy nodded.

"And yesterday, this man, Palo Vasquez, leader of one of Mexico's most dangerous cartels, arrived in L.A. with his pack of thugs," Jason explained.

"We think they have Tori's parents and that they came here to kidnap her," Billy added.

"And Hunter was with her," Cam stated. Jason nodded.

"These guys are hardcore. Hunter is lucky they took him too and didn't just kill him, which shows they're trying not to leave a trail," Jason stated.

"What are we going to do? Shouldn't we call the police?" Dustin asked.

"We are the police, kid," Skull chimed in.

"We have ways of tracking Tori and Hunter that not even the FBI have. This is officially a ranger mission," Billy said, as he showed them a handheld computer device with a moving crimson dot and a moving aqua dot.

"Morphing grid energies allow me to track any of us anywhere," he explained.

"Whoa…he's smarter than you, Cam," Dustin said in awe. The former green Samurai ignored him.

"They're heading for the Mexican border," Cam said. Billy nodded.

"We want in," Shane stated.

"We figured you would, but you'll need another vehicle. Ours are full," Jason said.

"We can take Tori's van!" Dustin called.

"We don't know where it is," Shane replied.

"Yes we do. If it's not at her apartment, then it has to be parked near the beach. She surfs every morning and Hunter meets her there after his run. I'm willing to bet that's where they were taken. It's pretty deserted that time of morning," Cam said.

"All right, we'll follow you to the beach so you can get the van and then we have to get on the road. They've got a good head start on us," Billy decided, as Shane turned to Skyla.

"You and Marah go back to Ops and tell Sensei what's going on," he said. She nodded.

"Be careful," she said, as they shared a hug and a short kiss. Marah did the same with Dustin and the two watched them all leave, before they headed back toward the woods.

* * *

Hunter woke up feeling like someone was repeatedly slamming a meat tenderizer against his temples. The light was like knives to his eyes and he felt sick to his stomach. He was no stranger to injuries due to various ones during his years of ninja training and motocross over the years. He remembered Blake having similar symptoms as these one time after a particularly scary motocross accident a couple years before they became rangers and that made him pretty sure he had a concussion. Taking deep breaths of air, he tried to push through the dizziness and pain, his worry for Tori fueling his will to push his own pain aside. Only years of ninja training made this even remotely possible to do.

Fortunately, he found her curled against his chest and unfortunately, she was sobbing, so he immediately knew something was terribly wrong. Tori didn't cry easily and she was tough as nails.

"Babe…" he whispered. She lifted her head relief instantly shined in her watery blue eyes.

"Hunter…" she sniffed, as she hugged him tightly.

"What happened?" he whispered, as he gazed ahead of them with slightly blurred vision. He noticed their captors weren't paying attention to them now, but had no idea what, if anything, they had done while he was unconscious.

"Did they hurt you?" he asked in a whisper. The thought of one of them touching her made him so angry that concussion or not, he would rip them apart.

"N…no, I thought one was going to…but I'm fine. I was just worried that you weren't going to wake up. They hit you so hard," she whimpered.

"I'm fine," he assured her. She shook her head.

"They're going to kill us. They just haven't done it yet, because they want my parents to watch them do it. This is about me and you're going to die, because of me getting you mixed up in this," she whispered. He gently pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"There isn't anywhere else I want to be than by your side…no matter what that means. And we've been in worse situations. We faced a whack job that absorbed the demonic spirits of past psychotic villains that were bent on destroying us," he reminded.

"With the others and with our ninja powers," she reminded.

"It doesn't matter. They may be civilians, but if protecting us means that I have to use my ninja powers, then I'll do it. Damn the consequences," he replied. She gazed into his eyes and was about to speak again, when she was roughly pulled away from him, as the van stopped. Hunter moved to stop the thug, who was currently dragging her from the van, but two more were on him, dragging him out as well. With his hands and feet still tied, they threw him on the ground and one kicked him in the stomach.

"Hunter!" Tori screamed, as the leader grabbed her arms, which were still tied in front of her.

"Time to see mommy and daddy, chica. Then they get to watch while you and I have some fun," he hissed, as he touched her face. She shrugged away in revulsion.

"Bring pretty boy as well. He's going to love watching this too," Palo leered, as they dragged the two young people into the massive compound.

* * *

"Man…what is with our bad luck lately?" Dustin asked, as they rode in Tori's van behind the others.

"What do you mean?" Shane asked.

"First we had to find the girls in a creepy dark dimension and defeat a psycho bent on destroying all rangers. And now we're about to take on a bunch of armed drug dealers. So much for a normal life," Dustin quipped.

"We're ninjas and a samurai. Our lives were never going to be normal," Cam added, as his phone went off.

"Cam here," he answered.

"_According to the tracking system, Tori and Hunter have stopped moving," _Billy told him.

"How much further do we have?" Cam asked.

"_We're still two hours out and we think that might be too late by then. We're pulling over at the next rest stop and I'm going to see if I can use my equipment to teleport us closer," _Billy said.

"All right, we'll follow you," Cam replied, as motioned for Shane to pull off at the rest stop behind the others. They all got out, while Billy climbed up on top of the van, setting up a triangulating antenna. He had hard wired three of their old communicators together and honed in on all their power signatures.

"Okay…I can get us just about two miles away from the compound. Everyone ready?" he asked. They nodded and Billy initiated the sequence, as they all teleported away.

* * *

Kanoi smiled, as his old friend and fellow Sensei, Luis Omino, came into his office at the Wind Ninja Academy. Already, construction at the Wind Academy was underway, as they prepared to merge their schools into one, just as they prepared for the union between their children.

"It is good to see you, my friend," Kanoi said, as they shook hands.

"Is there any word from your students?" he asked. Kanoi frowned.

"I am afraid not, but they have enlisted the help of some very skilled veteran rangers. They will find Hunter and Tori," Kanoi assured him.

"I see you have been going over the ancient scrolls. Have you considered telling Hunter and Tori about the prophecy?" Omino asked. Kanoi sighed.

"I have hesitated, because I didn't believe it was fair to burden their young love with such responsibility. To know that their future is to stand on the front lines and face evil when many others are allowed to live peacefully may weigh heavily on them. I myself never wanted Cameron to fight in this war," Kanoi stated.

"But it was his destiny, as much as it is theirs, especially if they have a child someday. It is no coincidence that evil seems to be popping up in droves. Someday soon, there may again come a time where more than one ranger team is required to fight again. They must know," Luis replied. Kanoi nodded.

"You are right. They are strong and they have many standing with them. We soon must prepare them for what may come," Kanoi said.

* * *

Shane peeked around the corner, spying at least a dozen hired men patrolling the compound, armed to the teeth.

"That's a lot of guns," Shane mentioned.

"Ever handle one?" Jason asked, as he and Billy crouched beside a case they had brought along with them when they teleported. Jason opened it and Rocky rubbed his hands together.

"All right, FBI has the goods. Give me that 9 Millimeter," he requested. Billy handed him the weapon and the seasoned cop loaded it and then holstered it on his belt. Jason put on his gun harness and holstered two handguns on both his sides. Billy did the same and Skull picked his weapon of choice.

"Does a blaster count?" Shane asked.

"Close enough," Jason replied, as he handed a gun to Shane, who looked very uncomfortable.

"I'm not a fan of guns either, but these guys are leaving us no choice," Trini told him, as both she and Kimberly chose their weapon. Tommy looked as unsure as Shane, for he had always been more comfortable relying on his martial arts skills. Ethan blew out a shaky breath.

"Let's hope all my years of shooting zombies in games helps me," he said.

"Just be careful. The only reason I'm even letting any of you near a gun is that we have no choice and we were all rangers, so fortunately that will help us," Jason warned sternly.

"We're not just going to go in there guns blazing, right?" Dustin asked.

"Of course not and you're going to be our decoy," Jason replied. Dustin's eyebrows were in his hair.

"Me?" he asked.

"Yeah, you're the one that can burrow underground and then pop up like a groundhog. If that doesn't freak them out and disorient them for us, then nothing will," Billy replied.

"Dude…I'm not a groundhog," Dustin complained.

"And we're not dudes," Kimberly retorted good naturedly, causing the others to snicker. Dustin smiled bashfully and stood up. He made his signature hand movements and disappeared beneath the dirt. The others waited for exactly the right moment to make a move and they knew they didn't have much time…


	3. Part 3: Rescue

Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers. Saban and Nickelodeon do.

AN: Welcome to the sequel to Endangered Legacy. When we left off, the rangers were celebrating Christmas 2005 together and now, nine months have passed and it is now September 2006. Thanks for all great reviews and here's notes to a few individuals:

Boris Yeltsin: I have heard of that movie, but I don't know if I've ever seen it all the way through. I'll have to check it out. Thanks though, I'm glad that I was able to capture the characterization and I love details. :)

lizziestrong7135: Thanks, glad you're enjoying the story

Harry2: Yep, time to kick butt. And yes, there is the mystical alignment coming which sets up the next story in this series. Not a lot more to come in this story, but much more to come in this series. :)

brankel1: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it. :)

TommyOliverMMPRFan: Yep, there are multiple situations at play here. The Zara storyline sets up the next story and the Mexican drug dealers will be dealt with in this one. There is a small foreshadowing scene that points to something more though with them. See if you can spot it. ;)

Pinkrangerfan: Thanks, glad you're enjoying the story! :)

garnetred: Thanks, glad you're enjoying it. :)

Secrets

Sequel to Endangered Legacy

Part 3/4

"Rescue"

The two hired armed guards smirked, as they watched the two young people be dragged toward the entrance to the mansion. One whistled appreciatively, as he eyed Tori. Once they were gone, the other chuckled.

"They'll have fun with that one," he sneered to his partner, who chuckled. However, a few minutes later, he frowned, as they watched a peculiar thing happening in the dirt. It looked as though something was burrowing toward them beneath the ground and they exchanged a confused glance. Suddenly dirt sprayed them and they shouted in surprise, before trying to regain their composure. There was now a chocolate haired young man in front of them wearing an odd looking black uniform with yellow piping.

"Hey dudes!" he called with a grin.

"What…where the hell did you come from?" one spat, as he raised his handgun. His partner followed suit and Dustin raised his hands.

"Whoa…easy now, I'm not a threat or anything," Dustin told them.

"And why should we believe you?" the man asked in his heavy accent.

"Cause dude…you're like totally the one that's the threat," Dustin replied. The two men looked at him with confusion, as Dustin scratched his head.

"Wait…I don't think I got that right…" Dustin rambled. His actually genius plan to use his air headed likeness was actually working, for the two men advanced, only to be blasted with some kind of yellow energy. They looked up from their place on the ground, only to find the mirth in the young man's face gone. It was replaced with a hard set glare, as several more young people suddenly surrounded him. They were about to scream for help, but one in red and another in blue leveled their handguns at them.

"Scream and you're done," the blonde man in blue threatened. Rocky and Skull grabbed the two and cuffed them.

"Duct tape," Rocky requested, as Adam tossed it to him. He placed it over the two guard's mouths, as they glared up at the group.

"What now?" Kira asked.

"We go in, but I think the front or back door won't exactly give us the surprise we want," Jason replied. Shane shot an air beam at the ground and propelled himself onto the roof of the mansion. They waited, as the air ninja took a lap around, looking for a way in from the top and

he soon returned with a big grin on his face.

"You're not going to believe our luck. Mr. Rich Drug dealer has skylights all over the roof," Shane called. Jason smirked.

"The roof it is then," Jason said, as he grabbed the rope they had brought and tossed one end up to Shane.

"Tie this to something secure," Jason called. Shane did so and they started climbing, while Shane used his air powers to propel more of them one at a time until they were soon all on the roof of the compound.

* * *

A battered and bruised Jack and Alana gasped in horror, as they watched their captors drag their daughter and a tall young man into the room. They assumed this was the boy their daughter had been dating.

"No…" Jack said, as he struggled with his bonds.

"I am a man of my word, Mr. and Mrs. Hanson. You'll see your little girl pay for your mistakes and her boyfriend too. But first…I promised my men that they could have some fun with her," he sneered.

"No…I'll tell you everything you want to know, just don't hurt her!" Jack pleaded. Palo chuckled.

"You endured hours of torture and remained resistant, yet when faced with the horrible coming demise of your little girl, you cave before we can even do anything. She'll pay for your mistakes and show you why no one crosses me and lives to tell about it," Palo hissed, as he grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him.

"Such a shame…you would make a lovely pet," he sneered, as he caressed her cheek.

"Get your hands off her!" Hunter growled, as he struggled with his captors. Palo glared at him.

"And just how do you expect to stop me?" he challenged. Hunter glared back.

"You have no idea who you're dealing with," he responded, making their captors all laugh at him. Tori's cerulean eyes locked with his silvery blue pair, recognizing the look of sheer determination in them. She had seen that same determination in his eyes time and again as they faced evil in alien form and knew exactly what he had planned.

"Hunter…" she whispered, shaking her head.

"No secret is worth losing you," he whispered back, confusing everyone in the room.

"I don't know what nonsense you're talking about, stupid boy, but you're going to watch us rip your little girlfriend apart and then one of my men is going to put a bullet in your skull," Palo said, as he roughly grabbed Tori's arm.

"Put him over there with the parents," Palo hissed. Two of the goons grabbed Hunter's arms and instantly recoiled in shock, as they felt themselves be shocked.

"Shit…" one cursed.

"What the hell?" the other wondered, as they stared at the blonde.

"What's the matter, you idiots?" Palo hissed, as he caught sight of the young man he had in his captivity. A strange dark red electricity coursed all over his body.

"He's some kind of freak, boss," one cried.

"Just get him and put him over there, you moron!" Palo spat angrily. The two lap dogs tried again and were electrocuted this time, falling to the ground and flailing in pain, as crimson electricity sizzled all over their bodies. Palo looked at the blonde young man in disbelief, before raising his gun to shoot him. Suddenly, he was doused from head to toe by a beam of water. Aqua ribbons of energy coursed all over Tori's body, as the dangerous leader turned to her with a murderous glare. Neither Tori nor Hunter had ever experienced their powers reacting like this, but they didn't have time to question it. Tori leapt up and kicked him in the stomach and rolled over his back, as he doubled over in pain. Hunter split kicked the two hired hands, as they rose to their feet and then shoved them together, knocking their heads together, sending them to the ground in pain. Tori's parents stared at their daughter in disbelief, having witnessed her manifest water seemingly from thin air.

"Shoot them!" Palo called to his men. Tori smashed her elbow into his nose, breaking it on contact, as Hunter grabbed her arm and sealed them behind a thunder shield, as they stood in front of her parents, protecting them as well.

"That's a lot of guns," Tori mentioned.

"Yeah, we need a plan," Hunter replied. She smirked.

"I thought you had one when you shocked those idiots," she said.

"Nah, you know I make it up as I go along," he joked.

"Sweetheart…" Tori heard her Mom say, as she turned to her.

"We'll explain later, Mom. Let's just say for now that I guess you guys aren't the only ones with secrets," she replied, eyeing them both with a raised eyebrow. Jack nodded.

"It was to protect you, sweetheart, you have to know that. But I wouldn't mind knowing where you learned to fight like that," Jack replied. By her Father's smile, she could tell he was impressed. She nodded at Hunter and in the blink of an eye, they tore their civilian clothes away to reveal their ninja garb.

"Believe it or not, we're ninjas," Hunter chimed in, as he undid their ropes, freeing them.

"My shield isn't going to absorb those bullets forever though," he mentioned, as he concentrated on keeping the shield up even as sweat beaded on his forehead.

"If we can get a couple guns, we might have a fighting chance. Ever handle a gun?" Jack asked.

"Does a blaster count?" Hunter asked.

"Close enough," Jack replied, as they scattered. Jack and Alana took cover behind some crates, while Hunter and Tori crouched behind a steel overturned table. Tori sighed momentarily, as she watched the aqua ribbons course through her hands and looked at Hunter. The same thing was happening to Hunter, crimson energy almost crackling from his body. He seemed to shock anyone he came in contact with, but she seemed to be safe against his powers, for she wasn't shocked when she put her hands on his shoulder and arm.

"I've never seen our powers react quite like this," she mentioned.

"Me either, but I'm sure Sensei will have some insight," he replied.

"Babe…we may not make it out of this," she said sadly.

"No way Tor, this isn't how we end," he replied, as he surprised her by kissing her passionately.  
"You hit these assholes as much as you can with water. Then I'll hit them with thunder and fry them. It's the only way out of this," he told her seriously. She knew that he was talking about using their powers to injure or even kill and it was strictly violating ninja code, but the situation was desperate. It was them or the bastards that would think nothing of killing them. She was going to choose them and her parents. Nodding to each other, they jumped into sight and bullets bounced harmlessly off Hunter's shield, as she sprayed a torrent of water at their attackers…

* * *

Shane knelt down and peered in one of the skylights, seeing the battle raging inside.

"Looks like we're late for the fight," Shane mentioned, as they watched Hunter and Tori use their powers to stay alive.

"Okay, we'll wait till the goons are under the falling glass. Skull, when I say, I want you to shoot this glass. Billy and I have vests, along with Rocky and Skull, so we'll go in first," Jason ordered, as he watched the battle.

* * *

Tori doused two more thugs with water and they angrily charged her. Hunter grabbed a long, thin two-by-four nearby from unpacked crates and snapped it in half on his knee, tossing half to Tori.

"Thanks," she replied, as they used them like bows and staffs they used in training. Hunter rapidly spun his like he would any thunder staff and took down to two more, before spin kicking the third. Tori thrusted the wooden weapon into the abdomen of another and back flipped to evade another foe. She stopped and gasped in surprise, as the one she had evaded pulled his gun.

"Tori!" Hunter called, as he tried to get to her. Before he could fire though, glass came raining down on him. Tori hit the ground, as he fired into the air and watched Jason drop onto him. He disarmed the thug and cuffed him, as Billy, Skull, and Rocky fired on anyone that raised their guns to them. Hunter crawled to Tori and they stayed down, while their friends provided back up.

"The Calvary has arrived," Hunter said, as he helped her up.

"Hey dudes!" Dustin called, as he hopped down from the skylight.

"How did you guys find us?" Tori asked with a relieved smile.

"Long story, but you can thank the Power Rangers F.B.I. over there," Dustin replied, as he joined the fight. Thanks to the added power, Palo and his remaining goons were forced to surrender.

"Who are you?" Jack Hanson asked.

"Jason Lee Scott, F.B.I., this is my partner Billy. And this is Rocky Desantos and Eugene Skullovich, Angel Grove P.D.," Jason replied.

"F.B.I. has no jurisdiction here, nor do these American police scum," Palo hissed.

"We're not here on police business, Ass hat," Rocky spat back.

"I'm confused. If you're not here on police business, then we can't legally arrest them! You just blew five years of undercover police work!" Alana exclaimed.

"Trust us, we'll explain everything. Just call your superiors and tell them you've arrested Palo Vasquez and his crew," Jason replied.

"And what happens when they start spilling the guts to my boss?" Jack asked. Billy smirked, as he pulled out a device.

"Don't worry, in a couple minutes, they're not going to remember any of this," he said. Jack and Alana had no idea what he could possibly mean, but a nod from their daughter allowed them the leap of faith they needed to trust these people and Jack made the call.

* * *

Tori sighed in relief, as Kira, Kim, and Aisha gathered around her, exchanging hugs with their ranger sister. Since the fiasco in Goldar's dark dimension, they had all kept in pretty close contact, especially the girls. But Hunter wasn't surprised when he was practically tackled by the three former female rangers with hugs.

"I don't know how you guys found us...but we're really glad," Hunter mentioned.

"You guys need to thank Billy. He happens to have a friend that works at the DEA who mentioned yesterday that two of their best agents had gone missing. Billy saw the names and pulled the files and was worried that these goons might be going after Tori when he saw that they arrived at LAX. That's when we used the ranger express to meet in Angel Grove and headed to Blue Bay from there," Kimberly explained. Tori chewed on her bottom lip.

"He and all his men saw our powers. How are we going to keep them from spilling their guts?" Tori asked. Aisha smirked.

"Doc Cranston, genius extraordinaire has that one covered too. You'll see," Aisha promised, as they followed them to watch the interrogation that was going on right now.

* * *

"Would you like some water?" Skull asked, as he placed a cup on the table in front of him.

"My hands are cuffed behind my back, you moron," Palo spat. Skull smirked.

"I know...I've always had a bit of a sadistic sense of humor, though it's nothing compared to your level of sadism," Skull retorted with a glare. Palo smirked deviously.

"Aw...you're talking about the dead little whores that smuggled my drugs over the border, aren't you? Don't lose sleep over that trash. No one misses a few pieces of ass like that. There's always more where they came from," Palo said smugly.

"Those girls had families, you piece of shit!" Rocky growled, as he threw the water in the man's face. His partner held him back form attacking the smug dealer.

"Easy bro, don't blow this," Skull warned. Palo scoffed.

"Your little good cop, bad cop routine isn't going to work on me, gentlemen," Palo informed.

"Fine, but you're going to talk...in fact, I think I'll have you singing like a canary soon," Jason said, as he loomed over the scumbag. Palo chuckled.

"Fat chance of that happening. You are screwed, police scum! I'll have your badges for interfering where you have no jurisdiction. You have nothing on me!" Palo spat, as he sat handcuffed to a chair. Jason approached him with a smirk.

"Nothing, huh? How do you know your employees aren't spilling their guts down the hall right now? Some of my associates can be very persuasive," Jason goaded. But Palo was unfazed.

"My men are loyal to me. They won't talk to the likes of you and when the real cops get here, I'll be telling them about this little crusade and demand an apology from the bureau. Then I'll tell them that they might want to have someone take a look at that blonde freak and his little whore! I saw what they did! I saw them shoot lightning and water from their fingertips!" Palo screamed. Jason kicked his chair out from underneath him and caught the man's chin before it hit the table.

"It doesn't matter what you think you know, slime ball. You picked the wrong people to mess with and in a few minutes, you're not going to remember anything from the last few days," Jason spat, as he hauled him up and put him back in a chair.

"You're...you're not cops..." he spat in disbelief, as he watched the blonde man in blue take a device that looked like it belonged in a Science Fiction movie out of his briefcase.

"Oh we're cops, but not right now. See, you picked the wrong girl to mess with and then you got us up in your business," Rocky replied.

"And when it comes to protecting our Legacy, we'll break the rules to ensure that bottom feeders like you aren't allowed to stain everything we've built," Billy said.

"There are more out there like me, you know. Some that operate in plain sight, some that wear polished business suits and that are regarded as some of the most prominent members of your society. They will find out about this, no matter what you do to me!" Palo spat.

"Shut up asshole," Skull spat.

"They'll find out about those kids' powers too and what's going on here," Palo threatened.

"Do it Bill," Jason said. Billy activated the device and Palo froze, as the memory extraction and rewriting began. Palo's warning still hung in the air though and they wondered if it was possible that it was more than just an empty threat...

* * *

By the time the rest of the DEA agents that were dispatched arrived, only Jack and Alana Hanson remained. The others were waiting back at the vans for them near the rest stop and their associates were a little surprised that two agents had managed to take down so many. Still, they had no reason not to believe them, especially when the ring leader himself started spouting curses at them about their betrayal. It seemed that the Hanson's had infiltrated and been so convincing that they managed to catch the entire operation off guard and taken them all down in one fell swoop. Their colleagues figured that it had been the culmination of five years of work, after all. Reporters were on the scene and the news would soon break back in the U.S...

* * *

_Sometime later..._

"_And we have breaking world news tonight out of Mexico," _the male reporter stated.

"_A spokesperson for the DEA has just announced that they have arrested Palo Vasquez, one of the world's most dangerous and notorious drug Lord's. Vasquez has been linked to a series of homicides involving Hispanic young women who have been turning up dead in California for over a year. It is strongly believed that these young women were used as drug mules and then murdered to extract the drugs. He is also wanted for multiple murders and drug trafficking in Mexico as well,"_ Tanya reported. Adam sighed and closed Billy's laptop in the hotel suite they had acquired in Mexico City, thanks to Tommy's connections to Wes Collins. Jack and Alana Hanson were still reeling from the earlier events and all they had learned. They were among the very few outsiders that had been let into their ranger world. They were stunned to speechless to learn that they were among former power rangers and their daughter was one of them. They were even more stunned when they had witnessed Billy use his device to erase Palo's memory, those of his employees, and replace them with a false account of events. They were all safe though, Palo and his goons were going to prison, and they would be home tomorrow.

"So…you are a power ranger?" Jack asked again in disbelief.

"I was three years ago, but I am still a ninja," Tori replied.

"We're sorry we didn't tell you about our real jobs," Alana said. Tori shrugged.

"It's okay I guess. I had my own secrets. I just hope we can trust each other from now on," Tori replied. Jack smiled and squeezed her hand.

"If you can trust us with something like this, then we can trust you with our secrets," Jack promised.

"Good, but can you make one more promise?" Tori asked.

"Name it sweetheart," Alana replied.

"Will you and Dad finally take some time off? I miss you both and I want to spend some time with you. I also want you to get to know Hunter, because he's a very big part of my life now," Tori requested. Jack and Alana smiled.

"It's a deal. Your Mom and I have earned some time off," he replied.

"Where is Hunter anyway?" Alana asked.

"He's talking to his brother Blake. He's going to meet up with us at dinner," Tori replied.

* * *

"_So let me get this straight…you and Tori were kidnapped by Mexican drug Lords, because Tori's parents are DEA, and everyone went rogue ranger to save you guys. And no one bothered to call me?" _Blake said, with obvious irritation over the video phone that Cam had set up in the living area of one of the hotel suites they were staying in. After the fiasco was over, they had made the jaunt back to the rest stop to get their vans. Realizing that it was getting late in the afternoon, Tommy had called Wes in Silver Hills and asked for a favor. Wes was only more than happy to rent out an entire floor of rooms at a nice hotel in Mexico City for them to sleep and regroup.

"Dude, no one knows where you are half the time," Shane reminded him.

"Yeah, I'm not even sure where you are most of the time," Hunter added. Blake sighed.

"_We just got to Seattle," _Blake told them with an eye roll.

"Seattle? That must have been a soggy track," Dustin mentioned.

"_You have no idea. I got mud in places I didn't even know existed today, but seriously, I would have streaked home in an emergency," _Blake said.

"Everything's been handled and we're all fine, thanks to Jason, Billy, and the others stepping in," Hunter assured him.

"Yeah, besides streaking from Washington to Mexico City would have worn you out. You wouldn't have been much good to us if you were dead on your feet," Cam added logically.

"_I guess you're right," _Blake said with a sigh.

"Hey bro, did you mail the thing I asked for?" Hunter asked. Blake smiled.

"_Yeah, I overnighted it. It should be at Storm Chargers by the time you get back to Blue Bay," _Blake answered.

"Thanks, we'll see you soon if you ever come visit," Hunter replied. Blake rolled his eyes.

"_Yeah, yeah, I'll be home for Thanksgiving," _Blake promised.

"Keep up on your training. We don't want you getting soft," Hunter teased.

"_Yes Mother," _Blake said, as he hung up and Hunter received questioning looks from the other guys.

"What?" he asked.

"What did you ask Blake to mail to you that you had to send it to Storm Chargers?" Cam asked. Hunter sighed.

"Well…when our parents died, we were left with all their possessions, which included our mother's engagement ring. At the time, we could have used the money and sold it, but we just couldn't bring ourselves to do so. They had a great marriage…a love that I'd never thought I'd find in a millions years. Blake and I decided that whichever one of us found the woman we wanted to marry first would give her mom's ring. I gave it to Blake years ago, because I was sure he would get married way before me," Hunter explained. Shane smirked.

"Yeah, we used to think so too," he teased and the blonde rolled his eyes.

"Anyway…I've been thinking a lot lately and this whole experience makes me positive that I don't want to wait any longer. Her father has never been around long enough for me to ask for his permission, but now I finally have the opportunity. I'm going to ask her to marry me, so Blake is sending me the ring," Hunter announced.

"Copycat," Cam teased with a smile.

"Hey dude, you totally forgot about Shane and me though," Dustin reminded.

"Yeah, dirt boy's right. We're like her brothers," Shane added. Hunter sighed. He should have known they would make it a point to give him a hard time.

"And if you morons were being serious and didn't give him your blessing, Tori would clobber you both," Cam interjected. Shane and Dustin glanced at each other and thought about Tori's reaction to them being "cavemen" as she so affectionately called it.

"You know you have our blessing dude, you're like our bro too," Dustin said.

"Yeah, you have my blessing too and for more than just the reason that Tori would beat me up if I didn't give you my blessing," Shane replied, as they shared a manly handshake.

"She does hit hard," Hunter agreed.

"You should have seen the looks on some of those thugs' faces when she waylaid them," he mentioned and they shared a laugh.

"I think most of them peed their pants when they saw us use our powers. Good thing Dr. C had that little flashy thing that scrambled their memories," Shane said.

"Yeah, I've got to get one of those," Cam said.

"Ah…nerd envy," Hunter teased.

"Yeah, yeah, all that nerd stuff is usually what saves our asses, so poke fun all you want," Cam replied with an air of superiority, as Tori came in dressed in the sexiest dress that Hunter had ever seen. His mouth went completely dry, as he stared at the woman he loved. Truthfully, he found her to be stunning in no matter what she wore, be it her surf wear, ninja gear, or even her pajamas. But it wasn't often he got to see her in a party dress…especially one in crimson.

"Earth to Hunter…" Cam joked, as he waved his hand in front of the taller man's face. Hunter shoved his hand out of the way, as she sauntered toward him with a smile.

"Wow Tor…you look great," Shane said first.

"Yeah, totally like a girl-girl," Dustin added, receiving an elbow in the gut from Shane.

"Dude, shut up, she went psycho on us last time we called her that," the red ninja hissed.

"Nah dude, that was the fake Tori," Dustin replied. Cam shook his head.

"You guys are idiots," he stated.

"That's a little harsh, don't you think, Cam?" another voice said, as four more people entered.

"Wes!" Shane called, as they shook hands.

"What are you guys doing here?" Dustin asked.

"This is one of Rich boy's daddy's hotels so we decided to hop on the private jet and come party ranger style with you guys," Eric replied.

"And Jen and Taylor brought us some clothes besides what we have to wear, since we can't really go to dinner in our ninja gear," Tori added.

"Jen?" Cam asked. He had briefly met Taylor, but was now a little leery that there was possibly a woman among them that was being exposed to ranger secrets, not to mention ninja secrets.

"Relax ninja boy, Jen knows everything," Wes assured.

"Jen Scotts, Time Force Pink," she introduced herself.

"Nice to meet you, but I'm a Samurai," Cam replied in annoyance.

"Whoa…you're from the future!" Dustin exclaimed. She nodded, not being able to hide her mirth at the Earth ninja's enthusiasm.

"Yes, I was…but I'm here to stay this time," she replied, as she shared a meaningful look with Wes and threaded her fingers with his.

She had only been back a few weeks and while she would miss the other rangers in the future, she had concluded without a doubt that there simply wasn't anything for her in 3006. She had tried to move on with her life, but she had left her heart in the past with Wes. So after much urging from her friends and even Alex himself, she had decided to forge her own destiny and return where she felt she truly belonged.

"Yeah, Wes has been wearing that stupid grin non-stop since she got back," Eric said with mock annoyance, earning him an elbow from his blonde girlfriend.

"They thought this would be the perfect opportunity for a mini reunion. Not everyone is here, but they got Skyla, Marah, Kapri, and Leann. Kat and Tanya also left their kids with their parents for tonight too," Tori explained.

"Awesome…let's get this party on!" Dustin said.

"The girls and the rest of the guys are already dressed, so get to your rooms and change," Tori told them, as they headed to their rooms.

"You look amazing," Hunter finally said and she smiled.

"Thanks…now go get dressed so we can eat. I'm starving," she said. He nodded and almost tripped while trying to leave and look at her at the same time. Tori shook her head.

"You were right about the dress," Tori said. Taylor nodded. She had chosen to wear her own color that evening.

"I don't know what it is, but when we wear their colors, they act stupid," Taylor replied. She knew this from experience and Eric glared at her.

"Maybe they do, but not me," he protested. Taylor rolled her eyes.

"Yeah right," Taylor replied.

* * *

_There's one more part in this story to tie things up and then I'll be moving into the 3rd story in this series. I don't know exactly how many stories will be in this series, but since I started this one, I have developed several more ideas. I originally planned on this being a trilogy, but it has grown beyond that. So not much more left in this story, but much more is left in this series. Hope you enjoy it!_


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